Prius v owner stereotyped. . .

Have you all been peaking in my windows? You just described me. In fact this week I put more miles on my bike than my Prius.

 

1) Do we have our radio set to NPR? Nope, bluetooth streaming from my iphone.​

2) We must be avid cyclists. Yup. But, I was well before I ever considered buying a Prius. I put bikes on top of my Impreza 2.5RS, my MKV GTI, and on the back of my 4Runner. ​

3) We must grow our own organic food. I'd love to have a garden. Just don't have the time for it. Homegrown generally tastes better.​

4) We live in Madison, WI. N/A​

5) We would love to "save the planet for its future citizens". I tend to be conservative as far as the environment goes. I grew up loving camping and hiking. I still go out to Glacier National Park and Yellowstone. Planning on another trip next year. These are fond memories that I hope to share with my daughter and wife some day. Why wouldn't I want to keep the environment in as good condition as possible? ​

6) We probably have Apple computers. I have a 27" iMac and a macbook air. I HATED Apple products until I set my eyes on a 20" iMac back in 2005. I'm a mechanical engineer and there is certainly a level of beauty that you get in Macs that you don't get on a PC. Oh yeah, the OS is rock solid and the first iMac I purchased in 06 still runs great and I gave it to my mom when I upgraded to a 27". You pay a little more up front, but I think that you get a very high quality, well thought out product that stays relevant for a long time. I dual boot in OSX and Windows so I have all my bases covered... AutoDesk Inventor and AutoCAD on my windows partition, everything else in the OSX environment. ​

7) We like driving under 60 mph. I like driving the speed limit. It is the safest and most efficient way to get from A to B.​

3 for 7. ​

 

So here is my Prius v parked outside Whole Foods where I shop using re-usable bags (that I got from the Toyota booth at the NY Auto show no less). Does not get more stereotypical than that!

 

First of all, I'm 37 - in the corn belt of Indiana of all places - I've only been "picked-on" a couple times about my prius and mostly from friends... this is what I tell them.

I have bought my last two vehicles based solely on need. When we got married, we had a boat (I was driving an s-10 pickup with a 4cyl and auto trans) ... it pulled the boat fine - but then we had a kid, and needed 4 door with towing capacity... bought a chevy blazer (dad was a GM mechanic for 40 yrs so I was brand loyal due to access to special tools, his knowledge, etc.) ... the blazer was a good car - had it's share of common issues with those... at 200k miles it was time to look for a replacement. My wife and i buy a car every 5 years - keeping them for 10. when hers was paid for it was my turn, when mine is paid for, it will be her turn. now with 3 kids - no boat, and having just sold the pop-up camper I used to pull... I didn't really need towing. Our minivan will handle my atv without problems. Now I commute 42 miles one way (just about an hour) ... my blazer at 20mpg, and 18 gallon tank was costing me between 500-600 per month in gas just to drive to work - it was parked all weekend long. I looked long and hard at compacts, small suv's like the equinox...etc. even used. a used prius at the time - 2010 gen3 4 was running about 22-24 on lots in this area... and i was like - i can get new for that. it's a no brainer. then the v was introduced ... and it was 1.5 inches longer wheelbase then the blazer and 1.5 inches shorter in body. same space behind the rear seats - so i could haul 3 kids and a stroller if needed - or my drums. (in a country band at the moment) ...

and it got at worst case - double the mileage that i was getting - offsetting the payment by half.

I bought a v2 - and took delivery friday the 13th of july. i don't listen to NPR - but I do occasionally listen to local AM talk radio -on the drive home. I wish I had a gun other than my little 22 rifle, but i can't justify the expense yet. I do cycle, but i wouldn't say i'm avid.
We had a garden last year - didn't do one this year, and it's a good thing - it's been so dry nothing has grown well.
do i want to save the planet - no - but i don't think that means we should purposely be irresponsible either. i mean - recycle batteries, don't dump lead and acid into the ground to leach into wells....etc. I think we as people do waste too much - but in some cases it's unavoidable.
I don't have a mac yet - I build my own pc's and have a droid phone and tablet. I would like a mac to play with - if nothing more than to learn the os a little bit. I am an engineer and double as an IT person at work. background in computer drafting - as one mentioned above - I had inventor - where I work now though, they use solidworks...
and I'm also into music - which is another reason for a mac - as they haven't came out with garage band for windows....to my knowledge.

Macs are beautifully designed - but for hardware that's 2 years old by PC standards - I can't justify paying 30% more or higher for one. maybe ebay or craigslist will offer up something cheap for me to play with - if it wets my appetite then so be it- I would rather pay more for something nice, then buy something cheap 2-3 times. that's my philosophy anyway.

Of those that did have something to say - I ask if they've ever even ridden in one, and then offer them a ride. afterwards, they say it's pretty nice... doesn't mean they will go buy one... and i'm not trying to make them either.

I live by my means - and having had a newborn last fall my wife stays at home - we're on a modest 1 income at just under 50k a year. It's low for the profession, but not too low for this area - and I work for a smaller company that has a lot more stability then say if I were to work for one of the big 3 auto mfgs.

sorry I made this too long - but in short - I bought it for it's practicality - having not given up space, but gained in fuel economy, and replaced a vehicle with high milage.

 

Those bags are AWESOME! I've had about 15 since a local auto show back in 2007 or 2008. They fit way more than normal plastic bags and they are super robust. Instead of grabbing 15 plastic bags, I can usually fit the same amount in 5 of the reusable bags. The fact that they hold their shape makes them so much better as well. I actually hate when I forget to put them in the car because they are much more pleasant to use than stupid plastic bags.

 

Need a "My other car is an Aventador" bumper sticker.

 

I've thought about getting a sticker for the Prius that says "my other car is a 4Runner" and the opposite sticker for my 4Runner.